The High Court has dismissed two appeals by an anonymised man who claimed Donegal County Council and the Department of Social Protection discriminated against him on gender grounds when dealing with housing and welfare supports.
The appellant, identified as JS, had complained to the Workplace Relations Commission that he was denied social housing support and one-parent family payment while, he alleged, his former wife received those supports. The WRC rejected both complaints. The Circuit Court upheld those decisions in December 2024.
Ms Justice Egan stressed that the High Court appeal was confined to points of law. It was not a fresh hearing of the discrimination claims.
On housing, the Circuit Court had found that Donegal County Council could not process JS’s application because he had failed to provide documentation required for the statutory means assessment. There was also insufficient evidence that his former wife had received housing support or had been assessed more favourably. The High Court found no legal error in that approach.
On one-parent family payment, JS had not proven that his former wife received the benefit. In any event, the evidence showed that she had greater custody of their children, while the statutory scheme required the claimant to have the main care and charge of a child. Again, no error of law was established.
The court separately rejected JS’s allegation that the Circuit Court judge was biased because of earlier involvement in family law proceedings. Although an earlier family law ruling by that judge had been quashed and remitted for rehearing by another judge, the High Court held that this did not disqualify him from hearing unrelated Equal Status Act appeals years later.
Ms Justice Egan also found that the transcript showed a measured hearing, not hostility or unfairness. Claims concerning interpretation, computer use, statistical material, costs and a proposed CJEU reference did not establish procedural unfairness.
The appeals were dismissed in full.